Local communities and citizens have the most to contribute to the sustainable development of the emerging Kras-Carso cross-border geopark. To this end, in the framework of the strategic project KRAS-CARSO II, co-financed by the European Union under the Interreg VI-A Italy-Slovenia Programme 2021-2027, whose lead partner is ORA Krasa in Brkinov d.o.o., we are developing, among other things, a cross-border network of schools of the Kras-Carso Geopark. We have established regular communication with educational institutions and encourage them to actively (co-)participate in the development of the Geopark. Through various workshops, we raise awareness among children, young people and their mentors about the importance of protecting the geological, cultural and natural heritage of the area and present the concept of the Geopark and the opportunities it brings for the development of business ideas in an interactive way.
In the school year 2023-2024, in cooperation with the project partners - the Autonomous Region of Friuli - Venezia Giulia, the Slovenian Institute for Nature Conservation (Zavod RS za varstvo narave), Škocjan Caves Park (Park Škocjanske jame) and external contractors in the cross-border Karst region, we have organised geological workshops for 31 classes of children. Of these, 21 classes were taught in Slovenian and 10 in Italian. In the theoretical part, the children learned about the basic importance of the Geopark, and in the second, practical part, they used geological instruments to discover the geological heritage in the surroundings of their schools, under the guidance of geologists. In this way, they learned, among other things, how rich the geological heritage is at every step of their home environment. The workshops are accompanied by a travelling exhibition, which the schools are hosting during the Kras-Carso Cross-Border Geopark Week, which takes place at the end of May and the beginning of June.
We start the new school year with an expanded programme of educational content. In addition to geology workshops, children try their hand at dry-wall building, develop business ideas related to the Geopark's themes and participate in various local events that highlight the natural and cultural heritage of the area. This school year, business ideas have already been developed at Hrpelje Primary School, students from Divača Primary School (Slovenia) and Col Primary School from Italy have tried their hand at dry-wall techniques in the spirit of cross-border integration, and primary school students from Komen participated in the first Honey Festival at Štanjel Castle. Educational activities will be carried out throughout the school year, and will be further intensified during the Kras-Carso Cross-Border Geopark Week.
